Lecturer
Department of Business Administration
eansah@ashesi.edu.gh

Dr. Ansah is a social scientist who teaches Human Resource Management, Leadership IV, Negotiation and Creative Problem-Solving and Organisational Behaviour. She is a product of top-ranked Wesley Girls’ High School in Cape Coast (Ghana).  She earned three Bachelor’s degrees in Psychology, International Affairs and French from Florida State University in 1999, graduating in three years cum laude (with honors).  She also holds a Master of Arts degree in Social Sciences from the University of Chicago (2004) and a Master of Science degree in Public Service Management from DePaul University in Chicago (2002). She holds a PhD in Public Administration (2008) from Rutgers University in New Jersey.

Dr. Ansah loves teaching and research, and is highly engaged in various initiatives in the academic community. She was voted by students as the Outstanding Faculty Member in 2008 and 2010, and also as the Most Inspiring Faculty Member in 2010.  Esi’s academic and professional interests include Service Delivery Reform in the Public Sector and Human Resource Management and Social and Public Entrepreneurship. 

Esi is also a founding partner and the current CEO of Axis Human Capital Ltd. Since 2008, Esi has managed Axis, growing its client base and establishing it as a respectable partner in supporting organizations in their development, providing business advisory services and recruiting high-calibre candidates for clients. Esi also uses Axis as a platform to provide mentoring and career coaching to job seekers and young professionals (CV Writing, Interviewing Skills, Career Planning, Entrepreneurship etc.), and is especially passionate about working with young students and professionals. 

Esi is actively engaged in various roles in her community, and also serves on the boards of the Longevity Project and Women’s Trust. She is a fellow in the Aspen Institute’s Africa Leadership Initiative (West Africa), and was honored in 2010 by the New York-based The Network Journal (TNJ) as one of the journal’s “Forty under Forty” African Achievers. She describes herself as a simple, high-energy person who never runs out of ideas (she maintains a detailed Idea Bank), and also as a “grounded idealist” with a sense of urgency and an aim to bring positive transformation wherever she finds herself.

Courses Taught: Leadership 4

Qualifications

• PhD, Public Administration, Rutgers University, Newark, New Jersey
• MSc, Public Service Management, DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois
• MA, Social Sciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois
  BA International Affairs, French & Psychology, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida 

Research Interests

• Service delivery and service quality across sectors (public, private, non-profit)
• Human resource development in the public sector (street-level bureaucracy)
• Social and public entrepreneurship in African development
• The role of Research and Development (R&D) in African development
• Social marketing and public sector branding

Work History

• Assistant Professor/Acting Head of Department of Business Administration, Ashesi University College, Labone, Ghana (08/2008 - 2014)
• Founding Partner and Chief Executive Officer, Axis Human Capital Ltd. (07/2007 – Present) 
• Adjunct Professor, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ (09/2004 - 05/2007)
• Research Assistant, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ (09/2004 – 05/2007)
• Junior Consultant, School of Public Affairs and Administration, Rutgers University, Newark, NJ (03/2006 -11/2006) 
• Adjunct Professor, Harold Washington Community College, Chicago, IL (01/2004 – 05/2004)
• Graduate Assistant, DePaul University, Chicago, IL (09/2002 – 06/2004)
• Adult Literacy Instructor, Blue Gargoyle Adult Learning Program, Chicago, IL (03/2001 – 08/2002)
• Technology Accounting Specialist, GATX Technology Services, Tampa, FL (01/2000 – 09/2000)
• Professional / Academic Memberships

Memberships

• Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)
• American Society for Public Administration (ASPA)
• International Society for Third Sector Research (ISTR)
• Pi Alpha Alpha, National Honor Society for Public Affairs and Administration
• Golden Key International Honor Society
• Phi Beta Kappa, National Undergraduate Honor Society
• W. E. B. DuBois Honor Society for Black Scholars
• Psi Chi, Psychology National Honor Society
• Pi Gamma Mu, Social Science National Honor Society
• Pi Delta Phi, French National Honor Society

Awards/Grants/Fellowships 

• Ashesi University College - Outstanding Faculty Award (12/2008, 12/2010)
• Ashesi Ubora Awards - Most Inspiring Faculty Award (11/2010)
• The Network Journal (TNJ) 40 Under 40 Achievers’ Award, (11/2010)
• Dissertation Excellence Fellowship Recipient, Rutgers University – Newark, NJ (2007 – 2008)
• Founders’ Forum Fellow - ASPA Conference, Milwaukee, WI (03/2005)
• David Gould Scholar - ASPA Conference, Portland, OR (03/ 2004)
• Florida-West Africa Linkage Program Award (1997-1999)

Academic Publications & Contributions

• Educational Planning – Building Bridges between Academe and Industry in Ghana (Upcoming Book Chapter in “Re-positioning Ghana: Challenges and Innovations”, by Prof. Nana Araba Apt, Ashesi University College)
• Piotrowski, S. and Ansah, E. (2010).Organizational Assessment Tools: Report Cards and Scorecards of the Federal Agencies. Public Administration Quarterly, Vol. 34: 1. Available at < http://www.spaef.com/article.php?id=1161>
• Contributor: Research and Information Resources for Public Administration (2005).
• Associate Editor: Frontiers of Public Administration Proceedings of the Second Sino-U.S. International Conference: “Public Administration in the Changing World”, Beijing, China, May 24 - 25, 2004.
• Theorizing The Brain Drain (2002).  African Issues Vol. 30: 1(21-24)  

Conference Papers

• Sustainable Development: The Social Enterprise Engine and Positive Social Change Paper to be presented at the Sixth International Conference on Public Management, Policy and Development (CIMPAD). Monrovia, Liberia. June 20 – June 22, 2011.
• Sustaining Development Through Civil Servants – The Crucial Role Of Human Resources In Civil Service Reform. Paper presented at the Sixth International Conference on Public Management, Policy and Development (CIMPAD). Kampala, Uganda. June 17 – June 21, 2007.
• Co-Author: Identifying Student Needs In Academia: Understanding The Concerns Of Doctoral Students In Public Affairs Programs In The U.S. Co-Author: Weiwei Lin, Rutgers University.  Paper presented at the 68th Annual American Society For Public Administration National Conference.  Washington DC, March 23 – March 27, 2007.
• Co-Author:Competing Performance Appraisal Tools: Report Cards And Scorecards Of The Federal Agencies. Co-Authors: Suzanne Piotrowski, David Rosenbloom.  Paper prepared for the American Political Science Association Annual Conference.  Philadelphia, PA, September 2, 2006.
• Co-Author: Reinvigorating Public Service: The Case For Branding In The Public Sector. Co-Author: Weiwei Lin, Rutgers University.  Paper presented at the 67th Annual American Society For Public Administration National Conference.  Denver, CO, March 31 - April 4, 2006.
• Reframing Capacity-Building In Africa: Recognizing The Importance Of Street-Level Civil Servants. Paper presented at the Fifth International Conference On Public Management, Policy And Development. (CIMPAD).  Dakar, Senegal, June 18 – 23, 2005.
• An Exploration Of Diversity And Methodological Frameworks: Positivism And Non-Conventional Contributions To Intellectual Inquiry In Public Administration. Paper Presented at the 2005 Annual National Association Of Schools Of Public Affairs And Administration Conference.  Washington, DC,  October 13-15, 2005

Current Research Projects

• Project Leader/ Facilitator - Qualitative Research Methods Network, Ashesi University College (regional hub for West Africa), in collaboration with the Institute of Development Studies (University of Sussex, UK). 01/2009 – Present)
• Understanding and Improving Service Quality in the Ghanaian Public Sector (Follow-up study and book in Progress)
• Ashesi Case Study Series Project (06/2010 - present)

Thesis Supervision

Topic areas include:

• Human Resource Management – organizational culture and human resource practices, workplace bullying and employee productivity, ethics training and employee performance
• Social Capital - recreation for the elderly, street hawker intervention programs, prisoner rehabilitation
• Marketing and Branding - nation branding in Ghana,  corporate social responsibility and brand awareness, service quality and corporate image, advertising and competitive strategies
• Natural Resource Management - Ghana’s oil discovery and the resource curse, water privatization (micro finance), Ghana’s progress in reaching the MDG 7 (deforestation)

Research Assistance

• Public Administration: Government Transparency - Analysis Of Report Cards And Scorecards Of Federal Agencies. Dr. Suzanne Piotrowski. Rutgers University, Newark, NJ (09/2005 – 08/2007)
• Public Administration: Citizen Participation In Local Government. Dr. Kathe Callahan. Rutgers University, Newark, NJ (09/2004 - 08/2005)
• Public Service Management: Comparative Studies Between The French And American Health Care Systems – Laying The Foundations For A DePaul – France Course Exchange Program. Dr. Sara Gooding-Williams.  DePaul University, Chicago, IL (09/2002 – 06/2004)
• Sociology: New Political Cultures: Africa. Dr. Teri Clark, University of Chicago, Chicago IL (05 -08/2001)
• Psychology:Social Perception And Aggressive Behaviour In Children. Dr. Janet Kistner, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL (05-08/1997)

Academic Committee Memberships

• CODESRIA, Prize for Doctoral Thesis - Award Selection Committee, Dakar, Senegal (04/2010)
• Trust Africa, Investment Climate and Business Environment (ICBE) Research – Pan African Juror, Dakar, Senegal (08/2010)

Non-Academic Publications

• Timely Reminder for the 2010 HR Manager, Business World, February 2010
• Training Frontline Service Personnel, CIO Business World, Ghana Edition. October/ November 2009
• Bringing Out Superior Performance In New-Hire Graduates, CIO Business World, Ghana Edition. September 2009
• Of Obamamania and Electionmania in Ogyakrom and Africa, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.18, Pg. 24 (November, 2008)
• More Issues to Consider for 2008 Elections, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.16, Pg. 22 (October, 2008)
• Africans and the Social Sciences, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.15, Pg. 22 (September, 2008)
• The Real Educational Reform That We Need, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.14, Pg. 27 (September, 2008)
• Let's Talk About Issues, Not Personalities or Parties, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.13, Pg. 21 (August, 2008)
• Paul Archibald Vianney Ansah: A Biography, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.11, Pg. 4 (July, 2008)
• Excerpts from the Writings of Paul Ansah, New Legon Observer, Vol. 2 No.11, Pg. 25 (July, 2008)

Service & Leadership 

• Aspen Institute’s Africa Leadership Initiative - West Africa Fellow (09/ 2009 - Present)
• Leadership Project: Empowerment through Education and Entrepreneurship (Triple-E Project)

Speaking Engagements

Dr. Ansah is a Career Development Specialist/Career Coach who often speaks to multiple groups of people, mainly young adults. Her talks are often aimed at facilitating a creative thinking process where workshop participants develop personal vision and mission statements. She also challenges students to explore academic disciplines and career options, tying their interests, skills, academic training and other factors together. A consistent theme in her discussions with students is on passion driving excellence in career pursuits. 

Some past speaking engagements:

• Bridging the gap between Academia and Industry – Business Sense (02/2011)
• Managing Your Boss, Citi 97.3 FM Business Edition (02/2011)
• Less Talk, More Action - Legacy & Legacy Springboard Roadshow (01/2011)
• How to Quit Your Job, Citi 97.3 FM Business Edition (07/2010)
• Proposal Writing – Pioneers Africa (04/2010)
• Interview Skills – ICGC Legon Campus Chapter (04/2010)
• Career Planning & Development – Springboard Show, Joy 99.7 FM (03/2010)
• Talent Management & Retention – CareerNation HR Conference (10/2009, 07/2010), Brighter Futures Africa (07/2010)
• Mission & Vision Development – V.O.I.C.E.S. Ghana (10/2009), History Makers Leadership Institute (06/2009)
• CV Writing, Job Search Strategies – HuD Group Friedrich Ebert Stiftung Foundation (06/2009), Akwaaba Expo (12/2009)
• The Art of Public Speaking – Holy Spirit Cathedral Youth (07/2009)
• Personal Branding – Ashesi Alumni Workshop (02/2009)
• Entrepreneurship – DUES Club, HuD Group (12/2008)

Volunteer Activities

• Longevity Project Ghana, Accra, Ghana (06/2005 – Present)
• Borstal Senior Correctional Center, Accra, Ghana (06/2008 – 03/2010)
• Shriners Hospital, Tampa, Florida (01/2000 – 08/2000)
• Musgrave Girls’ Home, Kingston, Jamaica (03/1999)
• Neighbourhood Health Centre, Tallahassee, Florida (03/1999 – 08/1999)
• Educational Research and Child Development Centre, Tallahassee, Florida (01/1997 - 08/1997)
• Regents Family Shelter, Manhattan, New York (06/1996 – 08/1996)
• Borstal Youth Institute, Accra, Ghana (07/1995 – 06/1996) 

Interests

• Volunteering in social service agencies and in church activities
• Idea generation for entrepreneurial ventures
• Helping young people with strategic academic and career development planning
• Writing poems (Collection of about 65 poems) and articles on social, economic development and spiritual issues, Blog: Drumbeats from Ogyakrom www.ogyakrom.blogspot.com
• Travel - countries visited include the USA, England, Canada, Liberia, Jamaica, France, Monaco, Spain, Senegal, Guatemala and Uganda
• Photography – landscape, urban space and activity